Hendrix Students at the 2008 April Meeting of the APS

A pair of Hendrix physics majors gave presentations on their research at the April Meeting of the American Physical Society. Josh Wilson '08 presented a talk entitled "Six degree-of-freedom thrust sensor for hybrid rocket" based on research conducted under the supervision of Dr. Ann Wright. Adam Jacobs '09 presented "Using a Large Ring Laser Gyroscope (RLG) to Understand the Torsional Components of Near-Field Seismic Events" based on research conducted with Dr. Robert Dunn. Adam was the recipient of a book award commending him for his excellent presentation. Only twelve of the forty undergraduate researchers presenting at the conference received awards.

The American Physical Society (APS) is the preeminent professional society for physicists in academia, government, and industry; it is responsible for the publication of several scientific journals as well as various public and governmental outreach initiatives. The April Meeting of the APS was held at the Hyatt Regency St. Louis Riverfront Hotel in St. Louis, MO. There were over 700 physicists from around the world at the four-day long conference. Dr. Damon Spayde accompanied the students to the meeting. The trip was funded through grants from the Arkansas Space Grant Consortium and the Society of Physics Students.